Tonight, a week after outplaying New Zealand in Sydney and shamelessly giving hope to the dozens of Aussie fans who still follow rugby, the Wallabies were humiliated. They lost 51-20, and they lost the Bledisloe Cup for a 12th consecutive year.

No team would have beaten the All Blacks tonight. They were that good. But the 31-point scoreline certainly contained a few interesting lessons, such as:

Most Aussies interpreted the 12-12 draw in Sydney as a sign of progress, but it was actually a blown chance. The Wallabies had an extra man for 20 minutes, at home, against a Kiwi side playing well below par, and they couldn’t get across the line. That meant they had to win in Auckland — and no Aussie team has done that since 1986.

Referees Jaco Peyper and Romain Poite brandished five yellow cards between them during the opening two Bledisloe Tests. All of those calls were pretty harsh. Perhaps Peyper and Poite were watching the recent FIFA World Cup a little too closely — or maybe the referees have just decided to stop tolerating cynicism from the players. That isn’t such a bad thing, really.

The All Black pose for a photo with the Bledisloe Cup/ Photo: Ross Setford.Source:AP

3. New Zealand’s forwards have lovely hands

No, I’m not saying they should give up rugby to become hand models. The All Blacks are better than any other team in the world because they’re multi-talented — the forwards can pass and the backs can clean out rucks. Those short balls at the line, with forwards passing to other forwards, tore the Wallabies apart tonight. Our boys should learn how to do that.

4. The Wallabies really are dangerous

They barely seemed to touch the ball until the score had blown out to 44-6, but after that, the Wallabies were quite excellent in attack. They scored two quick tries, and temporarily shut up the Kiwi crowd. Israel Folau offloaded at every opportunity. Michael Hooper, a forward, sprinted around defenders like a Honey Badger with rocket boots. The potential of this team is obvious, but at the moment, it’s also unfulfilled.

In the lead-up to this Test, it was suggested that several of New Zealand’s star players, such as its captain Richie McCaw, were past their prime. McCaw went on to score two tries. The All Blacks have still lost just one Test since the last World Cup, and they haven’t been defeated at home since 2009 — clearly, they’re still a mile ahead of anyone else.

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